India Speak: The CPR Podcast

To mark CPR’s 50th anniversary, we are delighted to present a brand new interview series called CPR Perspectives. Every month we plan to bring you a flagship conversation, with Rohan Venkat interviewing a faculty member on their research, policy practice and engagement with the most critical questions of our age.

Over the past five decades, the Centre for Policy Research has played a unique role in India’s policy landscape, tackling concerns as varied and vital as climate change and federalism, urbanisation and national security and bringing a genuinely multi-disciplinary approach to the field. Today, with India facing a complex geopolitical landscape and even greater development and climate challenges, the Centre’s faculty continue to produce field-defining research while also working directly with policymakers and stakeholders in government and beyond.

In the first interview, Rohan speaks to Navroz Dubash, a professor at CPR where he also runs the Initiative on Climate, Energy and Environment. Dubash is one of the world’s most renowned experts on climate change, having worked on the subject since the 1990s – well before it became a household term. Dubash’s wide-ranging career has featured landmark research papers, agenda-setting edited volumes, two authored books and key roles on a number of official and advisory committees in India and at the global level. He was a Coordinating Lead Author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the United Nations’ panel which publishes landmark reports on the state of climate change research.

Dubash’s work led to CPR being the overall anchor institution and technical knowledge partner for the Indian government’s Long Term-Low Emissions and Development Strategy. He has received the TN Khoshoo Memorial Award for his work on Indian and global climate change governance, the Emerging Regions Award by Environmental Research Letters, and the SR Sen Award for Best Book in Agricultural Economics and Rural Development, for his book Tubewell Capitalism.

In this conversation, Dubash talks about about working on climate change back in 1990 - well before it was in vogue, whether it is frustrating to still be going over questions of climate change vs development that have been around since then, why the Climate Initiative at CPR turned into the Initiative on Climate, Energy and the Environment, and why it’s important to make academic work accessible for wider audiences. Navroz talks about what it was like to help the Indian government draft its strategy for low-emissions development, why it’s important to not just follow the Western narrative on climate change and what advice Dubash has for younger scholars entering this important field.

In the third episode of Road to COP27, a special series as part of India Speak: The CPR Podcast, Navroz K. Dubash speaks to Rachel Kyte, Dean of The Fletcher School at Tufts University on the geopolitical context for COP27 and its implications. This series will bring leading experts in the lead up to Conference of the Parties (COP) 27, being held from 6-18 November 2022 at Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. They discuss the Inflation Reduction Act, the new climate legislation passed by the United States, and what it could mean for climate diplomacy. The episode also explores questions on climate finance, whether there is a landing zone for negotiations on loss and damage and what that looks like, and delves into questions around carbon markets.

About the speakers:

Rachel Kyte is the 14th dean of The Fletcher School at Tufts University. Kyte is the first woman to lead the United States' oldest graduate-only school of international affairs, which attracts students from all corners of the world and at all stages of their careers. Prior to joining Fletcher, Kyte served as special representative of the UN secretary-general and chief executive officer of Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL). She previously was the World Bank Group vice president and special envoy for climate change, leading the run-up to the Paris Agreement. She was also vice president at the International Finance Corporation responsible for ESG risk and business advisory services. In her UN role and as CEO of SEforAll, a public-private platform created by the UN and World Bank, Kyte led efforts to promote and finance clean, reliable and affordable energy as part of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. She served as co-chair of UN Energy. In the 2020 UK New Year Honours, Rachel was appointed as CMG for her services to sustainable energy and combating climate change. Kyte is a member of the UN secretary-general’s high-level advisory group on climate action and an advisor to the UK presidency of the UN climate talks. Kyte is co-chair of the Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative (VCMI), and chair of the FONERWA, the Rwanda Green Fund. She serves on the boards of the Private Infrastructure Development Group (PIDG), the Climate Policy Institute and CDP. She advises investors, governments, and not-for-profits on climate, energy, and finance for sustainable development.

Navroz K Dubash is a Professor at the Centre for Policy Research, a New Delhi based think-tank and an Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, NUS. He has been actively engaged in debates on climate change, air quality, energy and water as a researcher, policy advisor and activist for over 25 years. Navroz has been a Coordinating Lead Author for the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and has advised Indian government policy-making on climate change, energy, and air and water policy over the last decade. In the early 1990s, he helped establish the global Climate Action Network as its first international coordinator.

In the second episode of Road to COP27, a special series as part of India Speak: The CPR Podcast, Navroz K. Dubash speaks to Saleemul Huq, Director of the International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD) in Bangladesh, on the loss and damage debate that is expected to play a substantial role on the agenda. This series will bring leading experts in the lead up to Conference of the Parties (COP) 27, taking place from 6-18 November 2022 at Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. They discuss the growing calls from developing countries for financial support to deal with the impacts of extreme climate events, such as the recent floods in Pakistan, and the possible obstacles that could emerge at the negotiations. The episode also explores the politics of this COP and the symbolism of an African COP.

Saleemul Huq is the director of the International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD) in Bangladesh, and is an expert on the links between climate change and sustainable development, particularly from the perspective of developing countries. He was the lead author of the chapter on Adaptation and Sustainable Development in the third assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and was the lead author of the chapter on Adaptation and Mitigation in the IPCC’s fourth assessment report. His current focus is on supporting the engagement of the Least Developed Countries in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. He is researching the least developed countries’ vulnerability to climate change and the impact of adaptation measures. Prior to becoming a senior associate, Saleem was a senior fellow with IIED, and was also previously director of the Climate Change research group.

Navroz K Dubash is a Professor at the Centre for Policy Research, a New Delhi based think-tank and an Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, NUS. He has been actively engaged in debates on climate change, air quality, energy and water as a researcher, policy advisor and activist for over 25 years. Navroz has been a Coordinating Lead Author for the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and has advised Indian government policy-making on climate change, energy, and air and water policy over the last decade. In the early 1990s, he helped establish the global Climate Action Network as its first international coordinator.

CPR is delighted to launch a new series titled, Road to COP27 as part of India Speak: The CPR Podcast. Hosted by Navroz Dubash (Professor, Initiative on Climate, Energy and Environment, CPR), this series will bring leading experts in the lead up to Conference of the Parties (COP) 27, taking place from 6-18 November 2022 at Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. In the first epsiode of the series, Dubash speaks to Harald Winkler (Professor in PRISM, School of Economics at the University of Cape Town) on global stocktake of the Paris Agreement (GST) and its importance for climate mitigation and adaptation. They reflect on the conversations at the recently concluded Technical Dialogue, a core activity of the GST process that facilitates meaningful conversations between experts and country representatives, and how gaps in implementation of the Paris Agreement can be bridged. The episode also explores the key focus areas of this year’s COP including the debate on loss and damage.

About the speakers:

Harald Winkler is a Professor in PRISM, School of Economics at the University of Cape Town (UCT). His research interests are at the intersection of sustainable development and climate change mitigation. His academic publications can be accessed on Scopus. Specific focus areas for future research include equity and inequality between and within countries; just transitions; the global stock-take; and low emission development strategies. Harald is joint Editor-in-Chief of the international journal Climate Policy, a member of the South African and African Academies of Science, a coordinating lead author on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and a member of the SA delegation to the negotiations under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and one of two co-facilitators of the technical dialogue of the Global Stocktake under the Paris Agreement.

Navroz K Dubash is a Professor at the Centre for Policy Research, a New Delhi based think-tank and an Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, NUS. He has been actively engaged in debates on climate change, air quality, energy and water as a researcher, policy advisor and activist for over 25 years. Navroz has been a Coordinating Lead Author for the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and has advised Indian government policy-making on climate change, energy, and air and water policy over the last decade. In the early 1990s, he helped establish the global Climate Action Network as its first international coordinator.

In the sixth episode of CPR's series titled, Spotlight South Asia, we analyse the developments in Bangladesh. Hosted by Senior Fellow, Sushant Singh, this series features leading experts from India's neighborhood to make sense of the political, economic and social developments in these countries and what they mean for India. Our guest for this episode is Syed Akhtar Mahmood, an economist and former lead Private Sector Specialist in the World Bank Group where he worked on private sector development for three decades. His interests include trade, competitiveness, investment climate, mechanics of policy reforms and political economy. In the 1990s, he worked extensively in the transitional economies of the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe on state-owned enterprise reforms and privatization.

Akhtar Mahmood and Sushant discuss the economic situation in Bangladesh and the dependence of the country’s economy on textile manufacturing. Akhtar Mahmood speaks about the measures that Bangladesh adopted to cope up with the social indicators like public health and education in the pandemic as well as to mitigate the risks of climate change.

What are the big challenges to democracy in the country? What has been the impact of modern technology on Bangladesh society? How are Bangladesh’s economic ties with China and do these ties dominate the overall relationship between the two countries? Akhtar Mahmood and Sushant explore these questions. Finally, they discuss how today’s India looks from Bangladesh.

In the fifth episode of CPR's new series titled, Spotlight South Asia, we analyse the developments in Afghanistan. Hosted by Senior Fellow, Sushant Singh, this series features leading experts from India's neighborhood to make sense of the political, economic and social developments in these countries and what they mean for India. Our guest for this episode is Mirwais Balkhi, a visiting scholar at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Services. From 2018 to 2020, he served as the minister of education of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Earlier, Balkhi served as Afghanistan's Deputy Ambassador to India. Balkhi holds a PhD in international relations with a specialisation in West Asia from Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, India. He has published numerous academic articles both in English and Persian.

Mirwais and Sushant discuss the changes in Afghanistan in the past one year, and whether the collapse in the country is economic, social or political. They discuss if the country is facing a humanitarian crisis and the nature of government and politics in Afghanistan.

Do Afghans feel let down by the international community? Have the Taliban changed from what they were earlier? What is the big change in Afghan society in the past 10 years? What role can India play in Afghanistan? Mirwais and Sushant explore these questions.

In the fourth episode of CPR's new series titled, Spotlight South Asia, we analyze the developments in Bhutan. Hosted by Senior Fellow, Sushant Singh, this series features leading experts from India's neighborhood to make sense of the political, economic and social developments in these countries and what they mean for India. Our guest for this episode is Tenzing Lamsang, the Editor of The Bhutanese, a private newspaper in Thimphu, Bhutan. He is also the President of the Media Association of Bhutan.

Tenzing and Sushant draw a comparison between pre-pandemic and post-pandemic Bhutan. They discuss the economic situation in the country, particularly keeping tourism and hydropower, the two big economic earners for the country, as their focus. Tenzing also shares about the culture in Bhutan, what the customs and traditions are like.

How are the social indicators holding up? Has democracy gotten embedded in the country? Has the influx of social media impacted journalism? How does today’s India look from Bhutan? Sushant and Tenzing also explore these questions. Finally, Tenzing comments on whether Bhutan sees China with a sense of fear or opportunity.

In the third episode of CPR's new series titled, Spotlight South Asia, we analyse the developments in Nepal. Hosted by Senior Fellow, Sushant Singh, this series features leading experts from India's neighborhood to make sense of the political, economic and social developments in these countries and what they mean for India. Our guest for this episode is Amish Raj Mulmi, an editor and writer based out of Kathmandu in Nepal. He is the author of the book, “All Roads Lead North: Nepal’s Turn to China”.

Amish and Sushant discuss the economic situation in Nepal after two years of pandemic and if it is comparable to other South Asian countries like Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. They talk about the condition of tourism and remittances in the country. Amish explains the two agreements with the US that have become controversial in Nepal and the reasons behind this controversy. He also comments on the Nepal-China relationship in the light of the recent visit of the Nepalese foreign minister to meet his Chinese counterpart.

The discussion revolves around various important questions about Nepal and its relationship with other South Asian countries. What is the political situation in Nepal, how are the social indicators in the country holding up? Has the increase in the Nepal army’s strength and its role in the democratic setup changed the political landscape in some manner? Finally, they discuss how today’s India looks from Nepal.

In the second episode of CPR's new series titled, Spotlight South Asia, we analyse the developments in Pakistan. Hosted by Senior Fellow, Sushant Singh, this series features leading experts from India's neighborhood to make sense of the political, economic and social developments in these countries and what they mean for India. Our guest for this episode is Mosharraf Zaidi, a Pakistani public policy professional and the Founder and CEO of Tabadlab, an Islamabad-based policy think-tank.

Moshraff and Sushant discuss Pakistani politics and how it has transpired in 2022, including the role of the army and the judiciary. They discuss the troubling economic situation in the country and how the Pakistani economy can be put on a high growth path. They also talk about the social indicators like health and education in the country after the pandemic. Talking about the internal security situation in Pakistan, Moshraff and Sushant focus on the negotiation with Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in the erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Area. Finally, they discuss the possibility of a better India-Pakistan relationship and if China will play a major role in it.

CPR is delighted to launch a new series titled Spotlight South Asia as part of its podcast, India Speak. Hosted by Senior Fellow, Sushant Singh, this series features leading experts from India's neighborhood to make sense of the political, economic and social developments in these countries and what they mean for India.

In the first episode of this series, we analyse the developments in Sri Lanka. Our guest is Dilrukshi Handunnetti, an international award winning investigative journalist and a lawyer. She has worked extensively across South Asia and her work has appeared in leading platforms like the Guardian, New York Times, Al Jazeera and Mongabay. She works closely with media rights and human rights organizations with a particular focus on gender. She is the Co-Convener of the South Asian Women in Media, Sri Lanka Chapter and functions as the Executive Director of the Colombo-based Center for Investigative Reporting.

Dilrukshi and Sushant talk about the current economic situation in Sri Lanka- how and when things went wrong. They discuss the failure of institutional checks and balances and the reasons behind this. Dilrukshi also shares takeaways from the protests and talks about the widespread participation of the people of Sri Lanka. She also shares a Sri Lankan perspective on the India of today. Finally, they discuss how the decline of Sri Lanka is a tragedy for the whole of South Asia and how the country is keeping its hope alive in such a critical and challenging time.